


Beyond Fire

by mayormills (reginaregal)



Category: Once Upon a Time (TV)
Genre: F/F
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2015-01-30
Updated: 2015-02-07
Packaged: 2018-03-09 15:48:27
Rating: Mature
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 3
Words: 13,540
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/3255479
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/reginaregal/pseuds/mayormills
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>It is a new age in the Enchanted Forest. The reign of Snow White and her prince has come to an end, and Rumplestiltskin has risen to power. A prophecy has been told, predicting the downfall of The Dark One at the hand of the Savior. In fear of his destiny, Rumplestiltskin uses his power to banish all who defy him to a cursed land knows as the Darklands, where they face a punishment like no other.</p><p>Snow White and Prince Charming are on the run with a group of people who have pledged themselves to their cause; keeping their child safe until she can achieve her destiny and kill Rumplestiltskin, restoring peace to the land. On the child's eighteenth birthday, she joins a group who infiltrate the castle in the hope of fulfilling the prophecy. The invasion goes awry, and the Savior flees the castle, accidentally ending up in the Darklands. There, she meets Regina, the Queen of the Darklands, who vows to help her find a way back home.</p><p>In a land where time is stopped, the Savior learns more about herself than she ever thought possible. Her presence may bring peace, but at the cost of a great sacrifice.</p>
            </blockquote>





	1. Prologue

Rumplestiltskin looked at the beautiful purple concoction before him: true love. He had bottled it for the first time; something he used to believe was not possible. With this potion in his collection, the number of spells he could cast grew exponentially.

He flounced over to the bookshelf, scanning the covers for the spell-book he was looking for. Before he could find it, he heard a knock at the door.

“Who is it?” he snapped, suddenly pulled out of his giddy mood. “I said _not_ to interrupt, I am far too busy!”

The door creaked open slowly, and a fair-skinned brunette girl peaked in, wide-eyed in fear.

“I truly am sorry Rumple, it’s just—”

“Well, what is it?” he coaxed. “Spit it out already! Can’t you see I’m doing something incredibly important?” He looked at the blank expression on the girl’s face. “Yes, well… you wouldn’t understand. Come in, tell me what is so important that it justifies this rude interruption.”

Belle stepped into the room and cleared her throat. “There is someone outside the castle, and she… well, she claims that she has some information that might be valuable to you. It concerns the future of the land... your future in particular. She didn’t say more than that.”

Rumplestiltskin let out a dramatic sigh. “Very well, bring her in.”

Belle nodded, scuffling off and closing the door behind her.

Rumplestiltskin sat, crossing his legs and tapping his fingers on the arm of his chair as he waited. Who could this woman be, and what could she possibly have to say that he doesn’t already know? Doesn’t she know who he is? He is the _Dark One_ , and he knows much about the future of this land. Rumplestiltskin made his mind up to have this woman killed for presuming to think that she knows more about the future than he.

The door opened, and Belle entered once more, this time followed closely by an old woman with impossibly frizzy grey hair. _Great, the woman’s mad_ , Rumple thought to himself. He would rather not have to kill someone if her only crime is insanity, but he knew it must happen if he was to keep up his ruthless reputation.

Belle helped the woman into a chair across from Rumplestiltskin’s, and then sat beside her. Rumplestiltskin couldn’t help but notice the pleading look in her eyes, as if she knew that he was planning to kill the old lady.

“Well? What is it?” Rumplestiltskin demanded, deciding he would humor this woman. After all, it would be entertaining to see her scramble for some news that would surprise him.

The woman was silent, looking down at her hands without moving an inch.

“How dare you come here to waste my time! Guards!”

“There has been a prophecy,” the woman said in a low, gravelly voice that seemed foreign to her petite figure.

As the guards clambered in, Rumplestiltskin raised a hand to slow them. He couldn’t help but feel intrigued at the news of a prophecy in the land.

“A Savior born of the truest love shall reach eighteen and rise above. At the hour of the midnight sun, Rumplestiltskin will be undone. The bravest soul, with magic sword defeats, to see the land once again at peace.”

Rumple frowned, unable to believe that this woman had the audacity to come into his castle and speak of such foolishness.

“Lies!” he yelled, and turned and nodded at his guards.

The two men ran forward, seizing the woman by each arm and lifting her from her chair. Belle screamed in protest, but Rumplestiltskin ignored her. “Take her to the dungeon,” he demanded.

Her words were impossible. He could not be undone; he was the Dark One, and was essentially immortal. His power prevents anything from killing him except his own dagger, which was hidden well in the castle. No _magic sword_ could defeat him.

“Why are you so cruel?” Belle asked, tears in her eyes. “Don’t you see that woman was trying to help you? She was warning you that there is a prophecy out there predicting your death! Isn’t it better to know?”

“No!” he snapped. “It is not better to know, because it’s not true. Can’t you see the lady was a fraud?” He shook his head, standing slowly. “Belle please, you know me. I won’t hurt her, I’m just going to keep her in the castle. I need to have her questioned to find out who put her up to this, so that I can find out who my enemies are.”

“Your enemies are everyone! How can you not see that? You’ve alienated the entire land in your cruelty, and no one trusts you. You are notorious for trapping people in horrific circumstances with your deals!”

“I always warn them first. All magic—”

“Comes with a price, I know. And so do they. But that doesn’t change how much they hate the price they pay. And how much they end up resenting you for making them pay it.”

“Ahh, you’re right. As usual.” Rumplestiltskin managed a smile. “But how does that help me? How can I possibly learn who is behind this without torturing the answer out of this woman?”

“Rumplestiltskin, open your eyes,” Belle said softly, standing up and stepping toward him so she could take his hands in her own. “No one put her up to this. The prophecy is true. This woman is a witch, and she was terrified to come to the castle to tell you this news because she _knew_ you would react this way. But she did it anyway. She is no enemy to you, she is trying to help you. And now it’s just a matter of what you do in response. How will you save yourself from your fate? How will you defy this prophecy?”

#  ◆◇◆

Rumplestiltskin appeared in the middle of a clearing in the woods, directly below what he knew to be the Realm of the Fairies. He would only have one chance at this. If he fails, the fairies will go into hiding and he will lose his opportunity. To massacre them all and to absorb their power, he must succeed on his first try. Fortunately, he had just the spell to do it.

As he looked up at the clouds above him, he concentrated on the power within him. Then, in one fluid motion, he raised his arms above his head and chanted the words that would allow him to complete this genocide.

After a moment of silence, the clouds above him grew dark, and blackened with what he knew to be death. Fairy dust rained down on him, and he absorbed it all, feeling a new power he had never known before surge within him. Knowing that he had succeeded, he disappeared on the spot and reappeared within the confines of his castle. Since he was able to harness the fairies’ light magic, the combined light and dark magic within him is enough to make him capable of taking supreme rule of the land.

The naïve Snow White and her prince would have to relinquish control over their people. The Evil Queen will know, once and for all, that the apprentice can never truly overcome the power of their mentor. He will have the townspeople living in fear of him, and no one will dare defy him, least of all this _Savior_ , who was foretold to be the one to defeat him.

Now all that is left to do is to tell the world of his newfound power.

#  ◆◇◆

Snow White looked out of her window at the surrounding Enchanted Forest. Her hand rested on her stomach, where her child kicked relentlessly. She felt a presence come up behind her, and her husband rested his hands over hers.

“She’s going to be so strong,” Charming said, and Snow turned to look him in the eyes.

“She definitely has a lot of fight in her, I’ll give her that,” she said, laughing. “When she was smaller her kicks were endearing, but now they really are quite uncomfortable.”

“It’s not for much longer,” he reassured her. “The midwife said she’s due to come within the week.”

Snow White leaned in for a kiss, feeling as though she couldn’t ever be happier than this day. She pulled back and looked her husband in the eyes once more, trying to savor this moment, when she saw his eyes shift to look out of the window behind her, widening in surprise.

She frowned and turned to see what he was looking at, and the clouds darkened as though a storm was coming, although the weather could never change that quickly.

“What in the world?” she asked, and then a booming voice came as if to answer her question.

 

_People of the Enchanted Forest, it is I, Rumplestiltskin. I have some grave news. The fairies are dead, and I have taken their magic. Surrender now, or I guarantee things will get quite ugly. If I can kill off an entire magical species with just my dark magic, imagine the destruction I can bring to this land with dark and light magic combined. Anyone who dares oppose me will suffer dire consequences._

_It is a new age in The Enchanted Forest, and I am its new ruler._

_ Bow down to your king. _


	2. The Pervaders

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> A special thanks to [Lara](http://regalduckling.tumblr.com) for being the most amazing beta, and girlfriend, a person could ask for.
> 
> Story inspired by The Dark Wife by Sarah Diemer
> 
> Cover art by me.

**[Present Day - Eighteen Years Later]**

Emma's sword clashed against her opponent's briefly before she pulled back, maintaining her stance and readying herself for her next attack. The fluidity of her movements caused the onlookers to nod and murmur in admiration, but her focus was on the person opposite her. She easily blocked the attacks that came, and thrust outward when she saw the opportunity. After several minutes of this, she decided to try something new; she feigned an attack to the left and swept her entire body downward and to the right of her adversary, sticking a foot out to prevent them from remaining upright. Emma's opponent crashed to the floor, and she stepped over their body, putting her sword to their throat.

"I win," she declared, grinning as the onlookers erupted in applause.

"You cheated," Lily argued.

"No I didn't! It's not my fault you tripped." Emma reached a hand out to help her up, and Lily smiled and took it.

Once both on their feet, the two girls embraced. "Happy birthday Emma."

"Happy birthday!" the crowd chorused.

"Oh, look what you've done now..." Emma muttered, rolling her eyes at the way everyone congratulated her on living for another year. "It's kind of weird, don't you think?"

"What?" Lily asked as they walked over to the bunker to return the sparring swords they'd borrowed.

"The way everyone gets so excited about birthdays. I mean, it really shouldn't be such a big deal to live another year, but it is." Emma shook her head. "It didn't used to be."

"No, it didn't," Lily agreed. "But before the Dark One took power, birthdays were still celebrated."

"Yeah, but not like this. It shouldn't be some huge accomplishment to make it to your next birthday. It's depressing, really."

"Well don't think about it like that. Think of it as it being the one day of the year you get to do whatever you want. Especially this year."

Emma shrugged, kicking a stone at her feet. It's true, she could probably do whatever she wanted. It was her eighteenth birthday, which means she was finally an adult. Her mother had promised her that this would be the day she could leave camp, but now that it had come, Emma couldn't stop the jittery feeling in her stomach.

They'd reached the hidden underground bunker where the weapons were kept. Lily lifted up the trap door and the two climbed down into it so they could return the swords to their rightful place. It was dark, and the only light they had was from the single beam shining down through the door above their heads.

"What was your eighteenth birthday like?" Emma realized she'd never thought to ask her best friend this.

"Same as yours will be, I suppose. Sparring in the morning, a feast for lunch, and then I went off with the Pervaders on my first ever real mission."

Except Emma knew it wasn't the same. Lily had been allowed to leave many times before her first visit to Rumplestiltskin's castle. She'd gone off on many smaller missions; she'd been hunting, scouting, gathering... all things which Emma had missed out on. While she understood her mother was the former queen of this realm, and that she is to be the future queen if Rumplestiltskin is ever overthrown, she didn't understand how being trapped in this camp her entire life was supposed to keep her safe. Nowhere in the Enchanted Forest was safe. That was why their camp was never permanent. They moved on an almost monthly basis so as to avoid Rumplestiltskin's ever-searching guards.

"Was it scary? Entering the Dark Castle for the first time?"

Lily nodded. "A bit, I suppose. But there really isn't much to it. The more experienced people in the group know the castle backwards and forwards, including the guards' routes and schedules, and all of the hidden passageways that even Rumplestiltskin doesn't seem to know, or at least care, about. There isn't much danger to it, despite what your mother says."

Emma took a deep, shaky breath.

"Hey," Lily soothed, taking a step toward her and pulling Emma's hands into her own. "It's going to be alright, I promise. I'll be with you every step of the way. Cheer up, and I might even give you a birthday kiss."

Emma managed a smile, and Lily leaned in, letting go of Emma's hands to cup the sides of her face while they kissed.

"How was that?" she asked when they pulled apart.

"Pretty good," Emma said, giving a cheeky smile. "I feel like my nerves are pretty much gone."

"Pretty good? Pretty much?" Lily raised an eyebrow. "Oh, we can do better than that." She grabbed Emma by the waist and pulled her closer for another kiss.

◆◇◆

"I can't believe how fast you've grown up," Snow said as she brushed through her daughter's hair. "Eighteen already. It feels like only yesterday your father and I were watching you take your first steps. If your father could only see you now..."

"Yeah, well he can't."

The woman looked at her daughter sadly. "I know, I'm sorry. But when he comes back, there's so much he'll have to catch up on with you. Can you imagine the look on his face when he sees your talent with a sword?"

Emma wished her mother would just stop talking.

"I wonder if he'll even recognize you, with how much you've grown up!" she laughed.

Emma stood up, forcing her mother to release her grip on her hair.

"What's wrong?"

"That's all you ever talk about! How you can't wait for him to get back and see us again. Well guess what? He may never come back."

"Emma!" Snow chided.

"You talk about him as though he's just gone on a trip and will return home any day. You act as though he wasn't banished to the Darklands, with his memory completely wiped. You act as if there's no chance he was killed, even though there's no way to possibly know if he even _was_ banished."

Emma, that's enough."

"No!" the blonde yelled back. "No, it's not. You've kept me prisoner by your side for my entire life. But guess what? I'm eighteen now, and that means I don't have to follow your orders any longer. I make my own decisions. I'm in charge of my own life. And I choose to join the Pervaders and work to take down the Dark One."

"Emma, please..." Snow said quietly. "I know that you're joining them. I've known ever since you first held a sword that you would want to follow in your father's footsteps. I knew this day would come, and I don't plan on stopping you. I promised you long ago that on this day, you could go on your first real mission. I intend to keep that promise."

The girl crossed her arms stubbornly, but looked down. "I'm sorry."

"No need to apologize," Snow soothed. "Come here."

Emma sat back down beside her mother, allowing her to fix up her hair once again.

"I know I always talk about your father, and I am very sorry if the way I do that makes you feel helpless about his return. But I have hope, and I wish you did too. I have hope that you can help our mission to defeat Rumplestiltskin once and for all, and save all of those who have been banished. I know that it is possible, and I just wish you would believe too."

"I do believe! I believe it's possible to take down Rumplestiltskin, and I want to play my part in his destruction. But that doesn’t mean my father is going to return. That doesn’t mean he’ll get his memories back. That doesn't mean he'll come back to life."

"I believe you can do anything you set your mind to. Just don't give up hope."

Snow White finished braiding her daughter's hair, and tied the ends of it so it would stay.

"There, now you're ready."

Emma forced a smile, wishing she hadn't let her anger get the best of her. She knew her mother had her best interest at heart, and the faith Snow had in her meant a lot. But Emma couldn't help but feel as though her mother expected so much more of her than she could ever give.

"I have one more thing for you," Snow White said, standing up and walking over to a small chest in the corner of the tent. She opened it and removed something Emma never thought she'd see again.

"Father's sword!" she exclaimed, reaching for the scabbard her mother carried. "But... how? I thought it was lost when father was taken?"

Snow shook her head, smiling sadly. "The Pervaders who returned brought it back with them. It had been recovered, and I've been keeping it safe until you were old enough to use it. I think it's about time it was given to you."

Emma grinned, and took a few steps back from her mother before pulling the sword from its sheathe. She examined its shine, feeling the perfectly-balanced weight of it in her hand.

"Mother, it's... it's amazing. I don't know what to say!"

"Just promise me you'll be safe," Snow said, her eyes watering as she gazed upon her grown-up daughter. She could not be more proud.

"I will. I'll stick with Lily the entire time I'm there, and I won't do anything reckless, I swear! I am glad to have this sword, but if all goes well I won't even need to use it."

A knock came at the door, and Snow went to answer it, wiping her eyes on the way. She opened it to reveal Lily, clothed in her best leather for their mission. The girl stepped inside and addressed Emma.

"Well? What's taking so long?" she demanded with a smile. "The group's been waiting for you! We need to leave soon if we're to make it there by nightfall."

Snow White looked at her daughter, and Emma secured her scabbard to her belt before walking over and embracing her.

"Goodbye Mother," she said. "I will see you when we return."

"I love you _so_ much." Snow didn't seem to want to let go, but when Lily cleared her throat, she did. "I will miss you every moment you're gone!"

"I'll miss you too." Emma nodded to her as she turned and left their tent behind.

◆◇◆

The Pervaders had been walking for several hours by the time Emma spotted the Dark Castle in the distance.

"That's it?" Emma asked, in awe of the size, but not altogether impressed with its grandeur.

"Yep," Lily said, smirking. "It's boring right? I mean, compared to the Royal Palace, or even the Evil Queen's palace, it's a sore sight on the eyes."

Emma laughed. "Yeah, but it's at least the size of the two of them combined. How do we ever expect to find a small dagger here, even if it wasn't moved all the time?"

Lily shrugged. "But hey, if your father could do it, it means it can be done. It's all about being in the right place at the right time. And the odds are that it'll happen someday."

"Maybe today's the day!" Emma said hopefully.

"Yeah," Lily agreed, "maybe. I guess we'll just have to wait and see!"

The leader of the Pervaders called for them to stop for a rest, explaining that they should all have some food and water now, since they're in the final stretch before they reach the Castle.

"We go in through a secret passageway that leads to the dungeon," Lily reminded Emma quietly as they uncapped their water skins. "And from there, we'll most likely split up into twos. You and I will be together, because that's probably safest for you. Even though I'm—"

"Only twenty, you're still the most talented swordsman in the group."

"Swords _person_ ," Lily protested. "Don't be sexist."

Emma laughed, shaking her head and taking another sip of her water.

"Okay, come on. We're headed out now I think."

Emma took a deep breath, following Lily's lead and returning her water skin to her pack. "My heart won't stop pounding. I can't tell if it's from the excitement or the nerves."

"I bet it's just straight-up adrenaline," Lily said, "which means it's probably a combination of both. You'll be fine though, okay? I've done this a hundred times." Emma raised an eyebrow. "Okay, so that may have been a slight exaggeration. But I've done it enough to know that there's no real danger so long as you stick to the plan and don't do anything stupid."

Laughing, Emma said, "And since when have you known me not to do anything stupid?"

Lily punched her in the arm playfully. "Oh, shush. You'll be fine. You're too determined to succeed to mess this up. Besides, I have a good feeling about this mission."

The two women followed the rest of the group and hid their packs in the hollow of a tree. Emma took a deep breath, knowing that this was it. This was the moment she would find out what really goes on during these missions. She was going to see the inside of the Dark Castle, and most likely see some of the guards the Dark One keeps on constant patrol. And if she's lucky — or perhaps unlucky — Emma might even catch a glimpse of Rumplestiltskin himself.

As they neared the castle, Emma and Lily took up the rear of the group, following the rest through the trees to the back end of one wing of the castle. One of the men up front pushed on a stone in the castle wall, and a hidden doorway creaked open, revealing a spiraling staircase that led down into what was presumably the dungeon.

"I can't believe this is really happening," Emma whispered excitedly, grasping Lily's arm tightly as she followed her down into the castle.

"Pull the door shut behind you," Lily advised, "and make sure it latches!"

Emma nodded and did as she was told, waiting until she heard the clicking sound of the latch, and then hurried down the steps to catch up to the group. She was almost certain her heart's pounding would be audible if it beat any louder, and she took deep breaths to try to calm herself. She heard a ringing in her ears, and did her best to clear her mind of anything except for the task at hand.

As they made their way up, Emma heard a creaking sound as the leader of the Pervaders surely opened the secret door leading into the dungeons. She heard three quick taps before they started to advance.

"Three taps means the coast is clear," Lily explained in a hushed voice. "If it's two, it means turn and flee, and one means stand and fight." She noticed Emma's worried look. "I have only ever once had to turn and flee, and I've never had to fight. We only fight if they see us, and we’ve had plenty of practice at avoiding that. It's okay, Emma."

"I'm not scared," she denied stubbornly. "I was just... wondering why you didn't tell me that before. If we'd had to flee I probably would've held us up in the confusion."

"I knew we wouldn't have to," Lily whispered, shrugging.

They walked through the door to the dungeon, Emma once again pulling the door shut behind her. Looking around, she was surprised to see that most of the cells were empty.

"Why aren't there more prisoners?"

"This is only one of a few dungeons," Lily explained. "This one is where he keeps his special prisoners. They aren't visited as often, because they receive less meals and water. Which means it's safer for us to enter this way."

"But that's horrible! Why don't we bring them something?" Emma asked. "Or free them, even?"

Lily shook her head, looking down in shame. "If only we could. But if we did anything beyond pass through here, Rumplestiltskin would know this is how we get in and out. We would have to use one of the other entrances, which are much more closely guarded, and much more dangerous. The most we can do is offer words of encouragement. Fortunately, we know that those in this dungeon are entirely loyal to our cause and would never spill a word about our presence. They wouldn't be in here otherwise."

Emma nodded in understanding, feeling her insides twist into knots as she thought about how awful things must be for his prisoners. She tried not to look into the cells, for fear of it being too much for her. She didn't want to see the agony these people go through, knowing that it could all be over if they'd only succeed. Seeing their pain would only make it harder for her every time they fail. And unfortunately, the odds were in favor of failure.

As they were about to leave, Emma couldn't help but notice one prisoner in particular. A woman in a tattered blue dress sat quietly in the corner of her cell, looking at the Pervaders as they passed by. As Emma caught her gaze, she noticed that her face was bruised up, and her lip and eyebrow were both cut. Though no longer bleeding, they seemed fairly fresh, and the blonde felt immense sadness at the state of this woman.

"What is your name?" she asked softly, unable to help herself.

"Belle," the woman answered. Her voice was strained, but came out much stronger than Emma anticipated.

"Hi Belle, my name is Emma. We're not going to let you die, do you hear me?" Emma knelt down outside of the bars. "The rest of my group and I are here to kill Rumplestiltskin, as I'm sure you know. And though we have had many failed attempts in the past, I promise you that we will not ever give up. You will be freed. Stay strong."

The woman smiled in appreciation, and Emma couldn't help but notice how genuine her smile was. She saw how much hope Belle seemed to have, and she realized just how important her mission was. So many people suffered at the hands of their cruel "king," and enough was enough. If the death of her father wasn't enough to motivate her, this surely was. No one should have to go through the pain this woman, and many other prisoners, clearly went through.

Lily placed a hand on her shoulder. "Emma, come on. We have to keep moving."

Emma stood and nodded toward Belle in reassurance, and then turned on her heel and hurried to catch up with the rest of the Pervaders. As the two reached the group, Emma turned to Lily.

"Do you know why that woman was imprisoned?" she asked.

"You don't know about Belle?" Lily seemed surprised. "She and Rumplestiltskin used to be lovers. He manipulated her into believing that he was on the side of good, and that those who opposed him were evil. She fell in love with him, and became a pawn in his cruel games."

"What the hell happened? Did she learn the truth?"

Lily nodded. "Another prisoner convinced her of the truth, and Belle released her. Together, they escaped and lived on the run for years before Rumplestiltskin caught them. And when he did, he banished the other prisoner to the Darklands and kept Belle prisoner so that he could teach her a lesson himself. He uses her as a way of showing the people on his side what happens to those who betray him." Lily looked as if she was going to be sick.

Emma couldn't find the words to describe how much she hated Rumplestiltskin for all that he has done, but she knew Lily felt the same way. It didn't need saying.

"This is where we usually split up," Lily said.

Sure enough, the group came to a stop, and the man leading them spoke. "We'll split into twos in order to cover more ground. We have two new members among us. Samuel, you will come with me. Emma, you will go with Lily. The rest of you know who your partners are. We must all meet back in the passageway by dawn, so make sure to keep an eye on the sky so you get back in time. I will see you all then. Good luck."

◆◇◆

"It's been hours, and still  _nothing_ ," Emma said, unable to help how disappointed she was by the lack of action. It wasn't as though she was expecting to fight against Rumplestiltskin, but the mission of the Pervaders didn't seem to be going anywhere. All they did was sneak around the castle, scrounging around in various rooms for any sign of the dagger. Lily knew all of the best hiding places and passageways to escape to if guards happened upon them. And unless the guards spotted them, they would do just that; stay hidden, and stay quiet. 

"Stay patient, Emma. I hate it just as much as you, but the reality is that most missions will go like this. It may not seem exciting, and it may not seem like we're doing much, but every time we come here we increase the chance that we'll find the dagger. And every time we visit, we get to know the castle better and better. It was just a few months ago that we found a whole series of brand new hidden passageways that we'd never known about before. Just give it time. And who knows? We may still succeed tonight." 

"Yeah, maybe..." Emma said, but her heart clearly wasn't in it. "How do we know that he even still moves the dagger around? Or that it's even here in the castle? What if, after my father found it, Rumplestiltskin decided to have it moved far away? What if he keeps it hidden with magic? If that's the case, we stand no chance." 

"Then we'll find another way to defeat him," Lily said, not giving in to Emma's hopelessness. "We aren't the only ones working toward our mission. There are other groups besides the Pervaders. Many people are researching the Dark One's powers and looking for alternative ways to kill or capture him. The resistance will never lose faith."

"I haven't lost faith after one lousy mission," Emma assured her girlfriend. "But I can't help but wonder—"

"Shh!" Lily cut her off sharply. "Do you hear that?" 

Emma nodded, listening to the heavy footsteps coming toward the room they were in. 

"Here!" Lily whispered, motioning to the secret door behind a painting they had entered the room through. The two climbed through, pulling it shut behind them just in time to hear the door to the room open. 

"...yeah I've heard the rumors," she heard one of the guards saying flatly.

"But you're not nervous?" another asked. His voice was harsh and gravelly, and it gave Emma the chills. 

"There's no reason to be nervous, they're called rumors for a reason," he said matter-of-factly. "Look, the prophecy is a load of crap anyway. Even if the child does turn eighteen today, she has no way of getting close to His Majesty. And a magic sword? Please. Everyone knows that the King killed all of the fairies and banished the only other known magic-user in the Enchanted Forest. There is no magic sword, there can't be."

Emma furrowed her eyebrows, turning to Lily questioningly. "What the hell are they talking about?" she hissed. 

Lily shook her head. "Not now," she whispered back. "I'll tell you when they leave."

"We should get the papers and get out of here," the second voice said. "We don't want to keep King Rumplestiltskin waiting."

Emma heard a shuffling, and a drawer opening before the men undoubtedly took the papers they talked about. She waited almost a whole minute after hearing the door close before she pushed the painting open and stepped back out into the room. 

"Lily what the hell!" she said as loudly as she dared. "What do you know about this prophecy?" 

She shook her head apologetically. "Emma, I am so sorry. Your mother made everyone promise never to speak a word of it to you. She didn't want you to grow up with the pressure the prophecy would've put on you." 

"On  _me_? What does the prophecy have to do with me?" Emma recalled what the guard had said about a 'child turning eighteen today.' That must mean her, but why?

"Emma, please. Just hear me out okay?"

Emma nodded silently, but she clenched her jaw in anger, balling her hands into fists. How could Lily have kept something like this from her? How long had she known?

"Just before Rumplestiltskin took power, a seer visited him and told him about a prophecy that predicted his death. You know the rest: he massacred the fairies and harnessed their power, and then he banished the Evil Queen to the Darklands. And then, anyone who defied him would join her there."

"And as the number of people who were banished grew, it became a cursed kingdom of people," Emma recalled her childhood lessons, "ruled by none other than Regina herself. But you still haven't told me what part I play in the prophecy." 

"I know the prophecy by heart, and I can tell it to you but you have to promise me you actually want to hear it," Lily said carefully. "Because once you know your destiny, everything could change." 

"Stop being so ominous and just tell me the damn prophecy!" Emma demanded. 

Lily looked as though Emma had slapped her. "I-I'm sorry, I was just making sure."

Emma crossed her arms stubbornly. 

"The prophecy says,  _A Savior born of the truest love shall reach eighteen and rise above. At the hour of the midnight sun, Rumplestiltskin will be undone. The bravest soul, with magic sword defeats, to see the land once again at peace._ And you're the child of true love, Emma. You're the Savior." 

The blonde shook her head, closing her eyes tightly. "Why didn't anyone tell me?" she shouted angrily. "How could you have kept that from me? After everything we've been through together, why wouldn't you have trusted me with that information?"

"It's not that I don't trust you! Your mother—"

"Told you not to tell me. Yeah, you've said. But couldn't you have trusted me to keep it from her? To make sure she never knew that you disobeyed her orders? I would've  _protected_ you Lily, and you should've done the same for me."

"Emma..."

"And even today! You  _knew_ all along that it's my destiny to destroy Rumplestiltskin today. No wonder you were so confident that it would go well today. You told me you knew we wouldn't have to retreat when we were entering the dungeon. You told me you had a good feeling about today. All of that was based on the words of this prophecy?" Emma had never felt so betrayed. "Have you ever considered that maybe the prophecy isn't true? I don't have a magic sword! I have my father's sword, sure, but there aren't any magical qualities to it. Did you even  _think_ about that?"

"Emma, please." Lily had tears in her eyes. "Of course I thought about that. I always assumed it was just the dagger that the prophecy was talking about!" 

"You  _assumed_ ," Emma repeated in disbelief. 

"Yes, I did!" Lily snapped back, holding her ground. "And I'm sorry if I'm wrong, but even if the prophecy isn't true, what does that change anything? Even before you knew about the prophecy you wanted to come here today. Whether we're successful or not doesn't change anything! We'll just keep trying, like the Pervaders have done for years."

"Of course it changes things!" Emma yelled. "It changes  _everything_. People have faith in our mission because of me. Because of this prophecy. And when they don't see me succeed today, they'll lose hope." 

"That's not true."

"It is true. You didn't see my mother." Emma looked down. "She was so sure that I would help the Pervaders defeat the Dark One. Even though I didn't realize why before, I understand now. She believes in this prophecy. I don't think I can face her again if she knows it isn't true. If she finds out that my destiny isn't to defeat him today with some magical sword today." 

"And who says you won't?" Lily asked. "It's not midnight yet, we still have time." 

"Do you even hear yourself?" Emma asked, exasperated. "Me, taking down the most powerful, most cruel man in the land? I know I'm good with a sword, but he has  _magic_. What good am I against him?" 

"Emma, this isn't like you. You always have courage. You always believe in your own abilities, as you well should." 

"I can't do this." Emma turned and opened the portrait, ducking into the passageway and then standing once she was through. She looked back at Lily. "I'm done with this." 

"Wait," Lily begged, but Emma turned and ran away as fast as she could. Lily hurried after her, calling out warnings. "Emma, please! You don't know these passageways! You'll get lost, or you'll get caught!"

Emma didn't slow down as she darted through the darkness, taking random turns, not caring where she ended up. She suddenly found herself at the end of a passage, and she pushed on the wall in front of her, searching for a door. As she heard Lily's footsteps running to catch up to her, she found the latch and pushed the door open, stepping out into the light. She was about to close the door behind her when she heard a shout. 

"Hey!" a man's voice yelled.

She whipped around to see several guards surrounding an impish-looking man who could be none other than Rumplestiltskin himself. 

"Emma!" Lily ran out through the doorway after her. She skidded to a stop right behind the blonde, eyes wide in fear. "We need to run...  _now_." 

But as Lily tugged on her arm, Emma didn't budge. She stared at the man — if he could be called a man — who caused nearly all the anguish in the Enchanted Forest. Maybe this was it. Maybe the prophecy _was_ true, and this is the moment she will defeat him. She drew her sword, and a moment later Lily did as well, realizing what must be going through Emma's head. 

"Okay, let's do this," Lily said determinedly. 

Just as the two stepped forward to fight, the Dark One let out a shrill laugh. Suddenly, he went quiet and his face darkened. 

"Kill them," he said in a low, menacing voice that seemed utterly at odds with the laugh that had escaped his lips moments before. 

A fight ensued and Rumplestiltskin watched from a distance, either confident that his guards could get the job done or, more likely, uninterested in the intruders. 

Emma's sword clashed against the heavier, broader sword of her opponent. Though she had never before fought with her father's sword, her movements came easily. Her grip around the hilt was perfect, and the length was just right with her reach. In what felt like moments, she had managed to fend off two guards and slay a third, all while carefully keeping an eye on her love to make sure she wasn't hurt. As the first guard went down, the others' eyes widened in fear, but they continued to fight. Clearly their punishment for fleeing would be worse than death. 

Emma heard a cry of pain as Lily undoubtedly killed one of the guards attacking her, and it wasn't long before the four remaining guards all joined the first two in death. Both out of breath, they turned to Rumplestiltskin, who stood his ground, amused more than anything at the sight before him. His smile gave Emma the chills, and Lily reached out a hand to grip hers and give it a squeeze in reassurance.  _You can do this_ , Emma practically heard the brunette thinking. Just as she was gathering the courage to approach the Dark One, she saw the swords beside the dead guards' bodies quiver and begin to rise up magically. 

The women realized what was about to happen and turned to run, but as Emma looked down the hallway, she noticed how long it seemed to stretch on. She realized that no matter how far they ran, they would not escape if Rumplestiltskin truly wanted them dead.

Just as she tried to think of another option, Emma heard another laugh that made her skin crawl. She turned toward Rumplestiltskin just in time to see the swords shoot toward them. She screamed, raising an arm in an attempt at blocking herself and she turned away, bracing for the death that was sure to come. But when she felt no swords pierce her, she turned back. Before her eyes, a number of swords hovered in the air. As she lowered her arm, they fell and she looked toward Rumplestiltskin to see fear plastered across his face. Before she could even blink, he'd disappeared in a cloud of smoke, and Emma breathed a sigh of relief. 

"That was a close one," she muttered, and smiled, turning to look at Lily. Emma felt her heart drop as she saw the bleeding body beside her, sprawled out on the floor. "No!" she screamed. "Lily!" 

Emma fell to her knees, trying her best not to throw up at the sight of the gore covering her lover's body. So much blood... so much more than she'd ever thought possible to come from such a small body. 

"No, please, no! You can't die..."

Her face was hot in anger, and she hastily wiped the tears from her face as she lifted Lily's head from the ground and pulled her girlfriend's body onto her lap. The woman's eyes opened slowly, and looked into Emma's. 

"Lily!" she cried. "Lily, I'm so sorry. This is all my fault... if I hadn't—"

"No," Lily interrupted weakly. "Don't blame yourself." Lily inhaled shakily. "This was Rumplestiltskin's doing, no one else's."

"I'm sorry for getting so upset with you," Emma said. "I know you didn't mean to lie to me, and I know you trust me. It wasn't your fault that I grew up ignorant of the prophecy. And you're right, it was probably for my own good anyway."

"Promise me something?" Lily asked feebly. 

"Anything."

"Leave the castle. Don't go after the Dark One." Lily coughed. A trickle of blood ran from the corner of her mouth. "I know the prophecy says that you will be his undoing," Lily's voice quivered, "but you're worth too much to die for this cause."

"I can't go home," Emma stammered. 

"I..." Lily's breathing became very shallow, and she struggled to get the words out. "I need you to leave my body behind.

"No, please..."

Lily's body shuddered as she reached for Emma's hand. "It will only slow you down."

"Please don't leave me," Emma sobbed, gripping Lily's hand tightly within her own. "Please. I can't live without you, Lily. I don't know what to do... you  _need_  to live." 

"I love you Emma," she whispered, closing her eyes.

"I love you too Lily." Tears streamed down Emma's face, and she leaned down to touch her forehead to Lily's. 

The brunette let out one last, shaky breath before her body went limp.

Emma looked toward the ceiling and screamed in anguish. Eventually, she managed to calm herself and she slowly rested Lily's head on the floor. Despite the voice in her head screaming at her to bring the body with her, she knew Lily was right. She would never make it out of this castle unless she left her behind. Emma leaned in and kissed her love goodbye before standing up and running toward the hidden door they had entered through. 

After what felt like almost an hour of running through various passageways, Emma found herself in a part of the castle she recognized. It was the hallway where the group had initially split up, and with a sigh of relief, she ran toward where she knew the hidden path to the dungeon was. Within minutes she was in the dungeon, gasping for breath. 

"Emma?" 

The blonde jumped in surprise, and then realized whose voice had called her name. 

"What happened?" Belle asked, standing shakily. 

"Nothing," she lied as Belle limped toward the bars of her cell. "I, um... I need to deliver a message to some people we have waiting at the meeting spot in the forest."

"What message? Why are you covered in blood?" Belle's voice was thick with concern.

Emma shook her head, unable to come up with anything to explain the state she was in. "I- I have to go."

"Emma!" Belle called out, but the woman was already racing toward the exit.

◆◇◆

Emma tore through the forest, not even caring which way she went. All she wanted was to get away. Away from the castle, away from Rumplestiltskin, away from the terrors she had just witnessed. But above all, away from her destiny.

She felt a mixture of anger, betrayal, and deep devastation at the loss of the woman she loved, and the circumstances that had made it happen. Though she felt immense rage toward the Dark One, more than anything else she was angry with herself. If she hadn't let her emotions get the best of her, who knows what would've happened? She would probably still be in the castle, with Lily alive and by her side, searching the castle in search of the dagger.

As she crashed through the trees, she felt the branches scraping up her face. But she didn’t care. The physical pain was nothing compared to the immense emotional loss she had suffered that night. She ran for as long as she could, before collapsing to the ground, gasping for breath. She used whatever energy she had left to crawl over to a tree, sitting with her back against it as she pulled her knees to her chest and wept.

Hours passed, and Emma finally felt enough energy to stand. She looked around her, realizing she had no idea where she was or how far she had gone. She looked for anything she might recognize from her journey to the castle, but noticed the trees around her were different. They grew closer together, with thicker branches that blocked out any view of the sky. She looked in every direction, but it stretched on as far as she could see. She had heard of a forest like this, and had been warned to never venture near it. Once entering, one would be lost forever in the impossible labyrinth of trees stretching on endlessly.

This was the Infinite Forest.

 

 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I am not sure how updating will go, but I plan to post a new chapter roughly once a week. 
> 
> You can reach me at my [tumblr](http://mayormills.tumblr.com) with any questions, comments, concerns, and suggestions that you do not want to post in the comments here. All of which I am very open to and appreciative of.


	3. Lost Time

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> A special thanks to [Lara](http://regalduckling.tumblr.com) for being the most amazing beta, and girlfriend, a person could ask for.
> 
> Story inspired by The Dark Wife by Sarah Diemer
> 
> Cover art by me.

**[Eighteen Years Ago]**

_People of the Enchanted Forest, it is I, Rumplestiltskin. I have some grave news. The fairies are dead, and I have taken their magic. Surrender now, or I guarantee things will get quite ugly. If I can kill off an entire magical species with just my dark magic, imagine the destruction I can bring to this land with dark and light magic combined. Anyone who dares oppose me will suffer dire consequences._

_It is a new age in The Enchanted Forest, and I am its new ruler._

_Bow down to your king._

Regina shook her head, pacing her room and trying to decide what to do. Under normal circumstances, she might've felt as though her magic were comparable to the man who taught her in the first place, but not anymore. Not if he had truly obtained the light magic of the fairies. This made no sense... why now? What made him decide to kill all of the fairies and take over the Enchanted Forest? He had never expressed any interest before in being king, only ever in maintaining his reputation. All he'd cared about was the fear he instilled in others, as well as the countless deals he made with others. Deals in which he always seemed to gain something unforeseen; a price he warned about, but which people never seemed to pay heed to until it was too late. Regina knew his deals well, and had thus decided not to concern herself with him. She was content at her palace for the time being, with only one goal in mind: to kill Snow White.

It was only a matter of time until she found a way to destroy the woman, despite the protection spell that had been cast on her. The dagger she had thought would be her key to killing her greatest enemy ended up being her own downfall. Snow White had banished her to live alone, and that is exactly what she has been doing for the past few years. At first, it was agony, but now she realized the time was necessary. She had planned to search for a way around the spell, and had even considered - briefly - going to Rumplestiltskin for help. But now that he had declared himself the ultimate ruler of the land, she knew it was no use. The man had gone insane. Either that, or he felt as though he were in danger, and his cowardice had led him to take every precaution possible to ensure his own safety. They both seemed equally plausible.

"Sidney," Regina said, turning to her mirror. The man appeared, ready to receive her command. "Find out Rumplestiltskin's motivations in this, and then see if you can determine how many people are loyal to him. I want to know what I'm up against."

"Yes, Your Majesty," Sidney responded faithfully, and disappeared.

Regina looked at her own reflection for a moment before continuing to pace back and forth, immersing herself once more in her own thoughts. She wondered what she might do in retaliation to this ridiculous declaration of power Rumplestiltskin had just made. That is, if retaliation truly was the answer. If Rumplestiltskin didn't have the forces to back him up in his claim, it would make him extremely vulnerable. No matter how strong his magic, without support, she could rally her guards up against him, and she was certain she would be able to overthrow him. But was overthrowing him really the best option for her? Her one goal in life was to kill Snow White, and perhaps this was her opportunity. If she could somehow join forces with Rumplestiltskin, she could use his power to help her take down her enemy once and for all. But what if he wasn't open to an alliance with her? And couldn't an alliance with him only put her in more danger? Maybe the best course of action would be to just keep to herself, and continue on the way she has been. Staying out of trouble wasn't exactly Regina's specialty, but she'd made it work for the past few years... who's to say that she can't keep that up? At least until this whole thing blows over, something she seriously hoped would happen.

Hours passed, and finally Sidney reappeared in Regina's mirror. He smiled hesitantly once the queen acknowledged his presence.

"Well, I have good news and bad news," he said. Upon seeing her dismayed reaction, he hastened to add, "But the good news definitely outweighs the bad!"

"What is it?" she snapped. "Get on with it!"

"Okay, bad news first. Well… you see… Rumplestiltskin does have a great number of guards, and it seems as though the castle will be very difficult to attack directly, if that's what you were considering. B-but as for the reason behind his rise to power, I have something really interesting to show you. There's been a prophecy."

"A prophecy?" the Evil Queen perked up. "How do you know this?"

"He was writing it down on some parchment. He clearly believes quite strongly in its truth. If it was not he who predicted this future, then it was someone quite reliable."

"And?" Regina prompted. "What did it say?"

Sidney disappeared from the mirror, and a piece of parchment appeared in his place.

_A Savior born of the truest love,_  
 _Shall reach eighteen and rise above,_  
 _At the hour of the midnight sun,_  
 _Rumplestiltskin will be undone,_  
 _The bravest soul, with magic sword defeats,_  
 _To see the land once again at peace._

Regina's mouth widened into a grin. "So that's why the fool decided to harness the fairies' magic. He thinks it can somehow protect him from his destiny. Well, he should know more than anyone that a true prophecy will come to pass, no matter what he does. He may have sealed his own fate."

"I- I do have more bad news though, My Queen," Sidney stammered nervously. "I um- I came across a few of Rumplestiltskin's guards who were talking about what he's planning."

"Which is what, exactly?"

"He- he's planning to banish you."

Regina cackled. "Banish me? Doesn't he realize the former King and Queen of the Enchanted forest already did that?"

"I don't mean banish you from his kingdom." Sidney paused, and took a deep, shaky bread. "I mean he is going to banish you from this land. He's working to enact a curse that will trap you in a separate land forever."

"The coward..." Regina muttered angrily under her breath. "Who the hell does he think he is! He _made_ me this way! If he didn't want anyone with magic to exist in this world with him, then he shouldn't have _manipulated_ me into learning it! Why, I could just..." She began pacing again. "That doesn't even make sense! I'm not the one who will be his undoing. That's the Savior's destiny, whoever he - or she - may be, not mine."

"I- I'm not sure wh—"

"Does it _look_ like I'm asking you?" she snapped, and the man's mouth formed a tight line as he disappeared. "Wait, no. Come back." She waited, but Sidney was nowhere to be seen. "Sidney!"

Regina realized the gravity of the situation. If Rumplestiltskin truly had as much power as he claimed, it wouldn't take long for her guards to turn on her. As loyal as she liked to believe they were, she knew the only reason for their loyalty was their fear of her. But if that fear were to be transferred to someone much more dangerous, then... well, then that would mean she truly was in as much danger as Sidney warned. She had to leave. She had to go on the run, disguise herself, live somewhere no one could find her. At least for a while. At least until the Savior killed Rumplestiltskin, and rid them all of his existence once and for all.

◆◇◆

**[Present Day]**

Regina passed through the trees, wishing she had worn better shoes. With every step, the long, thin heels of her black leather boots sunk into the dirt, no matter how hard she tried to walk on her toes. Finally, she sighed and leaned down to unzip them and pull them off, holding them while she walked, figuring she could wash her stockings when she returned to her castle.

Perhaps her usual attire was not the best choice for this particular venture. She had gone on walks before, but never off the path like this one. While pointy heels and an elaborate dress might be fine on the pavement that led from her castle through the outer villages of the Lower Kingdom, it wasn't working out so well for her now.

"I so told you not to wear that."

Regina rolled her eyes, looking at the woman by her side. "Yes, but you never said why! You gave absolutely no indication we would be straying off the path. We have never left the path on our walks before, how was I to know this time would be different?"

"Because I said I had a surprise for you!" Ruby said, grinning.

"I figured the surprise would be a _what_ , not a _where_ ," the queen explained. "You should've told me we would be walking through the dirt."

"You really don’t understand the concept of surprises, do you?" Ruby teased. "Can’t you just use magic to change or something?"

Regina frowned. "I try not to use magic unless absolutely necessary. I've gotten myself into some pretty big messes in the past because of it, and I'd rather not go down that path again."

Ruby raised her eyebrows.

"Look, the entire reason I was banished here was because of my magic. Rumplestiltskin was too much of a coward to allow anyone who could harm him to stay in the Enchanted Forest, and I was the first person on that list." Ruby noticed that Regina sounded a bit pleased at that fact, but then her voice became colder. "I wouldn’t be here if he’d never taught me magic."

"That’s no reason to give it up." Ruby rested a hand on Regina’s arm comfortingly. "I wouldn't be here if I'd never met Belle, and yet you don't see me regretting any of my time with her."

"I use magic when I need to, but that's it. Walking in my stockings isn't the worst thing in the world."

"Fair enough." Ruby shrugged.

"Let's just talk about something else," Regina suggested.

"Like what?"

Ruby shrugged. It wasn't as though there was ever much to talk about. Not much happened in the Darklands, and anything interesting from the past few days had already been discussed. Ruby spent most of her time with the queen, since Regina was much better company than those in the Lower Kingdom. And the Upper Kingdom was another story altogether. She was fortunate enough that Regina took pity on her and allowed her to live where she pleased, despite the fact that she didn't truly belong in her village. Although, Regina would never admit that it was pity that led her to do that; she would say it was because Ruby was a friend.

Suddenly, Regina stopped and closed her eyes, appearing to be concentrated on something.  Ruby looked at her questioningly.

"What's—"

Regina raised her finger to her lips, motioning Ruby to stay quiet, and her eyes remained closed. She could feel it; the presence of someone new. But the girl couldn't have been banished. Regina would've received word ahead of time, like she usually did. This was different. This was something else.

"Regina!" Ruby hissed, demanding an answer for the queen's peculiar behavior.

"Ruby, go back home," Regina demanded without explanation, opening her eyes.

"What?" She looked taken aback.

"Please," her voice softened. "Just... do as I say. I have to look into something. I promise we'll do this another time, okay?"

Ruby nodded, though clearly confused and more than a little concerned. She pulled the red hood up over her head and turned to walk back toward her village.

Regina watched as she disappeared behind trees in the distance, and then turned toward the place she sensed the newcomer to be. She put her boots back on, and—despite everything she'd just told Ruby about magic—she disappeared in a cloud of purple smoke.

◆◇◆

**[Thirteen Years Before]**

Regina looked at the thirty-plus tents laid out in the large clearing in front of her. She had spent the last several days searching for Snow White's camp, and she found it. Rumors from various villages had led her to a few different locations, and finally she was successful. Over to the left, a group of people surrounded two sparring men. To the right, another group was crowded around a fire, eating some sort of meat. And directly in front of her, she saw Snow White herself. She sat on the floor next to her beloved Charming, laughing about something.

Magically disguised as a peasant girl, Regina planned out the best way to approach the couple without attracting too much attention to herself. However, before she stepped out from behind the tree she was hiding, she felt a tug at her tattered dress. She looked down to see a fair-haired child staring up at her with large, piercing green eyes.

"Who are you?" she asked, crinkling her nose and pursing her lips in a sour expression. "I don't know you."

"No, of course you don't," Regina said coldly. "How could you?"

"I know everybody here," the child bragged.

"Well aren't you a social butterfly." Her voice dripped in sarcasm as she tried to brush her off. "Run along, now."

"You're mean," she said, pouting and crossing her arms.

The girl pushed past Regina with surprising strength for her age and ran over toward the camp. To her surprise, Regina saw the child run right up to Snow White and throw her arms around her. She tugged on Snow's arm to get her attention, and then pointed over toward Regina.

 _Shit_ , she said under her breath, pulling back behind the tree. She peeked around to see Snow White standing up and walking over toward her, led by the blonde child. Regina debated running, but realized how foolish that would be. She came here with a purpose, and that purpose was to find Snow White. Sure, this wasn't the way she'd hoped it would go, but it could work.

She stepped out of the trees with her hands up, knowing that she had to look completely harmless if she was to have a conversation with the woman at this point. For all Snow White knew, Regina was here to kill her. And based on the fact that Regina had spend the vast majority of her life trying to do just that, it wasn't a far-fetched assumption to make.

"Regina!" Snow said, shocked at the sight of the former Evil Queen in her presence. "What the hell are you doing here?" She paused, raising her eyebrows. "And why are your hands up?"

"I um..." Regina felt foolish. "I didn't want you to think I was here to hurt you?"

"How could you be? Did you forget entirely about the protection spell I used on you?"

Regina clenched her jaw, furious at herself for being so ridiculous. "No, I didn't forget. I just didn't know if you remembered, so I figured I'd be safe."

Snow White shook her head in disbelief. "My daughter tells me you made fun of her?"

"I did not!" Regina protested. "Wait... daughter?" She opened her eyes in shock, looking from the child to Snow and seeing a resemblance she had missed entirely. Now that she looked more closely at the child, in fact, she saw a lot of her mother in her.

"Yes, my daughter. Emma."

"I'm five," the child said proudly, grinning up at Regina proudly while she held out five fingers.

"Oh good, she can count," Regina said, looking up at her mother.

Snow White squinted her eyes at the woman, trying to decide whether or not to call Regina out on her rudeness. She settled with a subject change. "Why are you here?"

"As much as I hate to say it," Regina said bitterly, "I'm here to join you. If there's one thing I've realized, it's that a common enemy can be more uniting than anything. I want to help you defeat Rumplestiltskin."

◆◇◆

**[Present Day]**

Emma trudged through the forest hopelessly, not even sure why she kept moving. Everyone knew the story of the Infinite Forest: once you enter it, you can never escape. The only way anyone could ever find their way out of this place is through magic, something Emma knew she couldn't possibly have. She would give anything to do this entire day over. To not argue with her mother, or with Lily. To be more careful on her first mission, and to protect Lily better. Emma should've thrown herself in front of her loved one, rather than throw her arms up in protection of herself. Whatever it was that saved her, she didn't deserve it. And she would give anything to take the whole thing back.

Was this to be the way she died? Wandering aimlessly in the Infinite Forest, starving to death, or falling prey to the beasts that resided here? Beasts which may or may not exist, Emma told herself hopefully, but found that it wasn't any help. She stopped and leaned against a tree, closing her eyes tightly and wishing with all of her might that this was all just some horrible nightmare.

_Crack!_

She heard a loud noise behind her, and spun around as she drew her blade only to lose her balance and trip over a root. She fell backward onto her elbows, and a sharp pain ran up her arm as her skin tore open on a jagged stone lining the forest floor.

She looked up to see a woman wearing a floor-length black dress that would've been modest, save for the fact that the fabric was sheer enough to see the corset underneath. The fabric came up around her neck, but was sleeveless, revealing her angular, bare shoulders. Her lips were dark red, and pursed in a frown that accented the sharpness of her jaw and cheekbones, and her eyes bore into Emma coldly.

"Umm... I..." Emma failed to find the words to explain herself. Though the reason she felt the need to was beyond her. Something about this woman's presence made her feel as though she was trespassing. But Emma didn't understand how this woman could be here, as the only living people in the Infinite Forest were those in the Darklands, but everyone knew it was impossible to enter that land unless banished magically by the Dark One himself. Maybe she had been mistaken. Perhaps this was just a very dense part of the Enchanted Forest, and she'd somehow happened upon private land that she didn't belong in.

"I don't know who you are," Emma managed to say from the ground, "but I wasn't trying to intrude or anything. I would go home, but I'm afraid I don't know the way."

The stranger raised an eyebrow, but did not move or say anything.

Emma tried to stand, but when she put pressure on her arm she felt shooting pain. "Dammit!" she cried.

The woman's eyes softened into concern, and she took a step forward. "Are you alright?" she asked, spotting the blood running down Emma's arm.

"Yeah," she nodded. "Well, sort of." She used her other arm to push herself to her feet and brushed her pants of. "I think it's pretty deep though." Emma tried to get a good luck at it, but before she could really tell what was wrong, the woman spoke again.

"I am very sorry. I thought perhaps..." she trailed off, and tried to harden her gaze again. "How did you get here?"

"I um... I don't know? I was really upset, and I sort of just ran. I guess I ended up deeper in the forest than I'd hoped to go. I wasn't really paying attention to where I was headed."

"No. How did you get _here_?"

Emma tilted her head. "I don't understand what you're asking."

"Do you know where you are?"

"No, I don't. That's what I was just saying," Emma said, starting to get a bit frustrated. "I wasn't paying attention to where I was going, and I don't know how to get back to my camp. Do you know these woods well?"

"Do you know who I am?" she asked.

Emma shrugged, more than a little confused by the seemingly-endless questions. "No, I don't think so." Emma took a closer look at her face, feeling an odd sense of familiarity, but finding herself unable to pinpoint where she might know her from.

"My name is Regina Mills," she said. "And I'm Queen of the Darklands."

◆◇◆

**[Thirteen Years Before]**

Regina sat on the ground near the fire, holding her hands out for warmth. When she'd first decided to joined the bandits in the fall, she failed to take into account that the weather would only get colder. And without her usual cottage to hold heat in, she found that fire was a great comfort. She shivered, looking at the people around her. Why didn't they look cold? Could anyone possibly get used to this kind of weather? Regina supposed she'd taken her location at a nice, abandoned cottage for granted. It was a huge step down from the comforts of her palace, but she didn't realize how much better it was than living in tents. Not only that, but being forced to relocate every couple weeks or so, for fear that Rumplestiltskin's men would track them down, complicated matters.

Emma sat between her parents, on the other side of the fire. The group was fairly silent while they ate, but Emma was talkative as usual.

"Mother, when can I use a _real_ sword?" she asked. "I want to fight like Father!"

"When you're older," Snow said.

"Why can't I use one _now_?"

"Because you're too small," Snow explained. Regina was amazed at how calm Snow was able to stay whenever Emma pestered her with questions like this.

"But I'm tall for my age! Can't I learn now?"

"No, it isn't safe."

"That's bullshit," Emma muttered.

"Emma!" Snow White gasped, her mouth dropping open in shock.

Regina looked from Snow to Charming, trying to judge their reactions. Naturally, Snow looked about as appalled as anyone could, given the situation. But Charming, much to Regina's delight, looked as though he was trying to keep himself from laughing.

"Where did you hear that word?" she demanded.

Regina closed her eyes, bracing herself for what was about to happen.

"Regina taught me it," Emma said, looking proud to have gotten such a strong reaction out of her mother.

Snow White's eyes pierced into her, and before things could escalate, Regina stood quickly and made up some excuse to get out of there. She walked away from the fire, deciding it would be easier to explain the circumstances to the woman when she wasn't so angry. Regina walked over toward her tent, unable to help but notice that the firewood pile was getting a bit small. Knowing that she would never be able to survive without fire to keep her warm, she decided to go out and get some more. She left the clearing to go search for some fallen branches that she could bring back to their camp.

As she gathered wood, she realized that it would be easier to carry it back if she used a simple levitation spell. Plus, that way she would be able to take back more than just what she could carry in her arms. With the wood she collected floating beside her, Regina felt a shiver run down her spine, and it wasn't just the cold. Something wasn't right. She heard a twig snap behind her, and she spun around to see several armed men approaching.

"Who are you?" she demanded, though she already suspected she knew the answer.

"We've been looking for you for a long time," one of them said, and suddenly started running toward her.

Regina used her magic to hurl a fireball at him, but it didn't seem to do any damage to his armor. Rumplestiltskin must've charmed it so that it could resist her magic. With no practical fighting skills beyond her use of magic, Regina was soon overpowered. She felt something hard hit the back of her head, and everything went black.

◆◇◆

**[Present Day]**

Emma couldn't believe it. How was this possible?

"But... but that means..." she trailed off, unable to finish that sentence. She couldn't be in the Darklands. She'd run away from Rumplestiltskin's castle and had gotten lost. How had she gotten here? How could that even happen? Emma felt dizzy, and leaned against the tree beside her, momentarily forgetting about the gash on her arm, but the pain of the bark rubbing against her wound served as a harsh reminder. "Dammit!" she cried.

"Here," Regina said, extending her arm toward the girl. "May I?"

Emma looked at the outstretched hand and sighed, nodding as she walked toward the woman. "Sure."

The queen took Emma's arm, and gently placed her hand over the bloody cut, muttering words under her breath and feeling the familiar tug at her gut as she expelled energy. It didn't cost her much energy to do a simple healing spell though, and soon she felt the skin closing and the blood flow stopping. The blonde smiled in relief.

"Thank you," she said. "I do know you, actually."

Regina furrowed her eyebrows. She didn't recognize the girl, but realized she'd have had to be very young when they met. And they'd had to have met if the girl recognized her; the queen had kept a low profile during the years leading up to Rumplestiltskin's rise, and she most certainly did not call much attention to herself after. Regina tried to imagine how long it must have been since her banishment, but found that she couldn't. It was very difficult to keep track of time in the Darklands; time was essentially frozen there, and the sun never rose. Not only that, but the people there did not age, nor require any sustenance to survive. Food and water were entirely unnecessary, which meant that living didn't really have much going for it.

"You probably wouldn't remember me," Emma realized. "I was really young when you were captured, and it wasn't as though we spent much time together. But you did teach me a few select curse words." Emma laughed at the memory. "My mother was _furious_."

Regina's eyes widened as everything seemed to come into focus. "You... you're not... Emma?"

Emma nodded, grinning. "You remember!"

"But you were five years old!" she stammered. "And now..." Regina looked at the girl, or, more accurately, woman standing in front of her. She wore a fitted black leather top with sleeves just barely covering her shoulders, revealing her toned arms. Around her waist was a double-belted scabbard that had once carried Emma's sword, which now lay on the ground back where she had fallen. The cloth of her top extended below her belt and hung loosely around the sides and back of her legs, with slits up the side to make it easier to move. Regina could see her tight golden-brown pants that covered her knees, and the lace-up black boots that were caked in dirt. Everything about her — the way she spoke, dressed, moved — led Regina to believe that this was someone who could take care of herself.

"Are you okay?" Emma asked, slightly concerned at Regina's gawking. "Do you- do you know how long it's been?"

She shook her head. "I'd never had much reason to keep track of time," she admitted. "At first, I tried to keep track of the hours, and therefore the days... but it all started to seem entirely pointless."

The blonde felt almost nervous to tell her how much time had passed. Although she couldn't imagine why it would matter so much, it seemed almost cruel to tell someone they had spent such an incredibly long period of time in darkness.

"How old are you now?" Regina asked, though she wasn't sure she truly wanted to know.

"I'm eighteen. As of today actually," Emma said, suddenly remembering that it was her birthday.

"Eighteen..." Regina wondered why that age struck her the way it did. "Wait... no!"

"Your Majesty, what is it?" she asked, worried at the horror-struck look on the brunette's face. "What's wrong?"

"You can't be eighteen! It's impossible! There has to be some mistake..."

Emma shook her head, reaching a hand out to grasp Regina's arm comfortingly. "I'm so sorry. I know thirteen years is a lot, and it's probably not what you were expecting."

"No, it isn't that." Regina closed her eyes. "Do you know about the prophecy?"

The blonde dropped her hand from the queen's arm and sighed deeply.

Taking that as confirmation, Regina continued. "Then you must know that it was your destiny to defeat the Dark One today."

"Yes, I'm aware. But that didn't happen," Emma said. "Which means either the prophecy is wrong, or I'm not the Savior. Either way, it's not my responsibility anymore."

"No, my dear, _you_ are the Savior. Make no mistake about it," Regina said with absolute certainty. "And maybe there's another way." She paused, looking into Emma's eyes. "You said you were running from Rumplestiltskin's castle, right? What happened? Why were you running?"

Emma shook her head. "No, we're not talking about that." She closed her eyes, and an image of Lily's lifeless body flashed through her head, and Emma winced. "I don't want to- I can't talk about it. It's not something I even want to think about. All I'm going to say is that I'm never going back there again."

Raising an eyebrow in concern, Regina nodded. "Okay, if that's all you want to say, I understand. It isn't easy to talk about what goes on in that castle. Believe me, I know." She held out a hand for Emma to take. "Come on, we should probably get you somewhere you can rest. It sounds like you've had a pretty awful day."

Taking her hand gratefully, Emma allowed the queen to lead her back to her palace, wondering what her life would be like now that she's trapped in the cursed Darklands.

◆◇◆

**[Thirteen Years Before]**

Regina slowly opened her eyes, her head pounding in protest to the light that streamed through the window above her head. Her wrists were bound in metal cuffs, and chained to the wall of her cell. She looked around her, trying to find a way out, when she heard a heavy door slam open. A man with strange, scaly green skin skipped into the dungeon, laughing gleefully.

"What are you so smug about?" she asked, refusing to show weakness despite the situation she was in. "If you wanted to kill me, I'd be dead. So what do you want?"

"Ooh, very smart," he said, thrilled. "And you ask all the right questions! I'm _smug_ because I just managed to cast the curse I've been working on for so long. As for what I _want_... well, that might take some explaining."

Regina raised her eyebrows.

"You see, this curse is a very special one indeed. I have managed to create a new land, a land which I'm going to call..." he rubbed his temples, pretending to think, "the Darklands! Get it? I'm the Dark One, and it's my land."

"I don't get it," Regina said sarcastically.

Rumplestiltskin's face dropped, and his eyes narrowed. He sprinted forward, slamming his hands against the bars of her cell and causing her to jump. He laughed, and then spoke in a deeper, cruel voice, "I like watching you squirm."

Regina remained silent, waiting for him to continue with his explanation.

"This new land is going to be your new home," he said, his voice back to it's normal, light tone. "Oh, but don't worry. You will be well-off. Very well-off, indeed. I plan to make you its queen!" He grinned as though he'd just given her the best news he could possibly give. "Queen of the Darklands... has a nice ring to it, don't you think?"

Regina couldn't bring herself to answer, but she glared at him, her eyes showing the true hatred she had for this impish man.

"At first, you won't have many subjects," he went on. "But not to worry! Before you know it, they'll start piling in, and they'll all be under your rule. I think that's rather generous, don't you?"

"Why are you doing this?" she asked, managing to find her voice again. "Why not just kill me? What's in it for you?"

He laughed cruelly, shaking his head. "Some fates are worse than death, dearie."

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I plan to post a new chapter roughly once a week. 
> 
> You can reach me at my [tumblr](http://mayormills.tumblr.com) with any questions, comments, concerns, and suggestions that you do not want to post in the comments here. All of which I am very open to and appreciative of.


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